Monthly Archive

In a few minutes I leave for the aiport for my around the world trip.  The first leg of my journey is from Auckland to Perth, Australia (far western part of Australia). I overnight in Perth and then around midnight, Perth time, take the 12 hour flight to Johannesburg, South Africa. Go through immigration and then continue on to Cape Town, arriving at 11 a.m. Cape Town time which is 11 hours different from Auckland.  The conference begins on Wednesday night and continues through Sunday. I speak on Saturday and faciliate a forum that day as well.

The processual analysis is a qualitative study method that can offer insights into the study of forgiveness and reconciliation. The processual approach is rooted in an understanding of the nature of change in organizations that assumes that change is an ongoing emergent process with no finite endpoint; that change ermges from the actions and decisions of people and thtat imposition of lienear models of change are simplistic, denying the untidy processes which unfold in an iterative fashion with much backtrackging and omission.

My friend Steve Roese flew in from Dallas for a brief visit today. We had a great time taking him around Auckland: One Tree Hill, Cornwall Park, Mt. Eden, Mission Bay, Downtown and the Waterfront and Posonoby. We enjoyed good Thai food in Mission Bay and rich conversations throughout the day. Special friends are a gift.

Regretfully the health plan reforms have fallen to partisan debates and emotional, doomsday predictions by both sides. The American health care system provides some of the most outstanding care globally. There are serious issues to consider in the reform process. It is also true that there is a moral obligation: 45 million plus Americans are without health care and according to the journal "Health Affairs," another 25 million are underinsured. Our country is decades past due addressing the issue of care.

Today, two desparate events took place, one in Ft. Hood Texas, one in Jarratt, Virgnia. The first was a memorial service led by President Barach Obama for the 13 victims of the violent act of an imbalanced radical; the second the execution of the mastermind of sniper attacks that paralyzed our nation's capital for three weeks in 2002.

In less than three weeks, I head to Cape Town, South Africa for the Beyond Reconciliation Conference. There are have been lots of details travel-wise to work through as I will fly to Perth, Australia, spend overnight before continuing on to Johannesburg and then Cape Town. I will be staying with friends in Cape Town. The conference goes Wednesday through Sunday, Dec 2-7. There appear to be a lot of great seminars and I look forward to the interaction with scholars and practioners. 

Tonight Naomi and I watched a huge fireworks display. The past four nights people aroud New Zealand have set off fireworks in honor of Guy Fawkes. November 5 marks the downfall of the Gunpowder Plot of November 5, 1605 in which a number of Catholic conspirators, including Guy Fawkes, attempted to destroy the Houses of Parliament in London. The day is primarily celebrated in the U.K. but New Zealand as a former British colony gets seriously into celebration. The fireworks in the neighborhood have kept us awake past midnight this week.

Debate is taking place in Christian communities regarding the origins of the universe, of the diverse life on planet earth as well as the arrival of the human species. Many in the scientific community have unquestioned belief in Darwinian theories. That is why an article in today's New York Times (November 2, 2009) caught my attention, " Creationism, Without a Young Earth Emerges in the Islamic World." http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/science/03islam.html?8dpc